The Lesser Evil
by BlackMoonWhiteSky
Summary: Discontinued. Rewriting. The new version will be called Ornithophobic. Sorry.
1. She Was An Idiot

Her choices were Hibari and Reborn, she owed her life to someone and she had to pick who she wished to be indebted to. She chose what she believed to be the Lesser Evil, only time will tell if she chose wisely.

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><p>Annnnnnddddd this is a sort of trial run if you will, I'm posting the first chapter of a couple of the stories that I have in the works and waiting to see what people think of them, if I get a positive response then I shall continue with the story, if not…meh, I haven't actually decided yet. So anyways, read and review please. ^_^<p>

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><p>The Lesser Evil<p>

Chapter 1: She Was An Idiot

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><p>====Story Start====<p>

She was curled into herself on the floor of the dim room, eyes closed, a relaxed expression on her pale face, she didn't even appear to be aware of what had gone on just outside of her cell door. She didn't open her eyes to glance at him when he entered, didn't even twitch at his aura of violence, in fact, she didn't seem aware of him at all, until she suddenly spoke. "Who are you?"

He didn't answer her question, instead, he said, "Reborn sent me to save you."

This at least caused her to stir, she lifted her head and glanced at him, eyes a golden-brown that reminded him of a cat. "...Reborn of the Vongola?" He nodded. "In that case... you can get the hell out of here; I refuse to be indebted to one of the Arcobaleno bastards." Her words should've sounded angry but she said everything in monotone so it didn't have the same affect, instead she just sounded tired.

She was exhausted really.

A vein in his forehead pulsed with irritation, he had done this as a favor for the Baby who had promised a challenge, so far there had been nothing but a bunch of weaklings. It had put him in an unpleasant mood and now he had to deal with this. She dropped her head back to the ground, eyes falling closed once more, and rolled over and stretched out on her back, "Just leave."

That did it, no one told him what to do, his tonfa went singing towards her ribs, eager to knock the insolent breath from her lungs. He felt the tingle of contact rush up his arm but his ears were not met with the satisfying sound of metal on flesh, there was no gasp, no cry of pain. In fact, there was no body in front of him at all. His narrowed eyes found her perched on the edge of the bunk she hadn't used, head tilted to the side and a frown on her lips. The faint indigo glow of the pendant that she wore around her neck gave him an idea as to what had happened.

"An illusionist," He hated illusionists, they were always such a pain. "like Mukuro."

Her eyes widened slightly but quickly returned to normal before he could notice, "You know Mukuro-kun?" Again her voice was monotone and again he ignored her question, though his aura became even more deadly. It figured… it figured that she knew Him, wasn't that just his luck? She knew Him and even felt familiar enough to use the suffix –kun, it really was just his luck.

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><p>=====About A Week Earlier=====<p>

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><p>Canary Black was not happy, not happy in the least. Why? Because, to put it simply, she was an idiot. She knew she should have ignored it when she saw that one boy, Tsunayoshi, getting harassed by a bunch of delinquents, should have kept on walking, but she just couldn't quite do it. So she'd created an illusion of an officer walking by and they'd scattered like the bugs they were at the mere sight.<p>

It was odd, she admitted to herself, odd to see him without his Guardians at his side, perhaps that's why she'd helped, despite knowing what would happen because of it. Although, in her defense, she hadn't exactly expected someone to be waiting on her doorstep for her when she got home a mere five minutes after it happened.

The knowledge that her family was looking so hard for her did not give her the warm fuzzies. She nervously fingered her pendant as she eyed the person waiting for her, wondering if she could defeat him and escape. She forced her face to show no emotion, knowing that such weakness was intolerable, at least when faced with her kin. The illusion she was maintaining dropped, her appearance became more feminine, she was still wearing the boy's school uniform, her average sized chest was still bound, but her face softened, her hips seemed a little wider, her waist more defined.

Small details.

Small details that turned her into a girl before the unwanted visitor's eyes, not that he didn't already see past the illusion, he was her family's equivalent to the Vongola's Mist Guardian after all, her Mist flame was half as powerful as his. "Brother." She had to work so hard to keep her voice monotone, to keep her hate hidden from him. Her emotions only acted as more proof that she was her family's last surviving failure.

"Canary. Father wants you back now, he is quite displeased with you for running away." That statement made her want to laugh so much, made her want to laugh until she cried. She knew it was hysterics that were driving her thoughts now so she separated her thoughts from her emotions; she was still thinking about fighting him. '_This is no good,_' she calmed her mind, her body was still numb with dread but her mind was calm, '_I need to focus, no flying by the seat of my pants allowed. What is best for me? What is the safest path for my Soul?_'

To her great displeasure that path was going with him, her physical safety was more uncertain but her glowing eyes saw her Soul's safety was in following him.

So she did.


	2. An Old Face

Her choices were Hibari and Reborn, she owed her life to someone and she had to pick who she wished to be indebted to. She chose what she believed to be the Lesser Evil, only time will tell if she chose wisely.

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><p>Thank you Alizoo, Geniusly-Unique, Jen the random reader, and Juliedoo for your reviews! They are much appreciated. Anywho, here's chapter two of The Lesser Evil. ^_^ Enjoy.<p>

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><p>The Lesser Evil<p>

Chapter 2: An Old Face.

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><p>====Story Start====<p>

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><p>Hibari dropped her unconscious body at Reborn's feet with a decidedly irritated thump, displeased scowl in place. Reborn smirked. "Ah, I see you have retrieved Miss Black. Thank you, I owe you one, as promised."<p>

There was a low growl from the angry Cloud Guardian and he resisted the urge to kick the body in front of him. "What was that? You said it would be a challenge to retrieve her, but there was nothing but weak herbivores."

Reborn looked surprised for a moment, eyes sliding to Canary before going back to Hibari, they caught on a darkening mark on his left cheek as his regular smirk returned. "You mean Miss Black was actually agreeable with the idea of going with you? I'm quite surprised, I didn't think she'd just accept your assistance." He watched with amusement as Hibari's scowl deepened as he subconsciously rubbed his cheek, aura darkening even more, if that was possible. Both of them ignored Tsuna freaking in the background and Gokudera getting angry, as per usual. "As for the others, if you weren't challenged-" He was interrupted by a monotone voice, one that Hibari was already starting to dislike quite thoroughly.

"If you weren't _**defeated**_ it means that my brother was otherwise occupied and had a far more lax security than he should have." Attention turned to the girl now sitting up on the floor, scowling and rubbing her head gingerly. "You know you jerk, that freaking hurt." Again, her words should have sounded angry… they didn't. She heaved a sigh and glanced around, though her movements seemed lethargic Hibari could see that her eyes were sharp and he immediately realized she was assessing her situation, as she seemed to note all exits and people in the room with her. He wasn't the only one to notice.

"We are not going to hurt you, you know." Her strange golden eyes, Hibari noted absently that her right eye had a sliver of pale blue color that looked almost as if a thin spike of ice was stabbed through her iris and into her pupil, snapped to Reborn at his words and she smiled.

It was the most unpleasant smile Tsuna had ever seen in his life, not because it was threatening but because it was so very bitter.

"You are Reborn are you not? One of the Arcobaleno?" There was a sound of confirmation and her smile flattened out into a thin line once again, the flicker of emotion she had shown disappearing like it had never been at all. "You are widely acknowledged for your vast information network, even the Black family respects your extensive knowledge base. So I know what I say when I tell you that I will not work with you and that you know why that is."

Gokudera snorted, sneer on his face. "I've never even _**heard**_ of the Black family."

She glanced at him and for just a moment the corners of her mouth quirked upwards but it was so brief that no one really noticed and she spoke with her forever bland voice, the lack of tone change was probably why he didn't immediately realize that he had been insulted. "If someone like you had heard of the Black family, even if only through an accident or slip by one of their… allies, it would be a stain to their honor. One that would need to be rectified rather quickly."

"Their? You no longer consider yourself one of them?"

She turned once more to face Reborn. "That is hardly any of your business. Besides, like I said earlier, you already know about it and don't think for a moment that I am unaware of that fact." There it was again, emotion so strongly suppressed that it was nearly unnoticeable. She hauled herself to her feet, once again her movements were lethargic and once again Hibari could see the predator in her, the way her muscles were tightly coiled, ready to lash out violently, the way her eyes darted around once more reading their body language, judging who was a threat. No energy was wasted, every movement methodical but hidden as the cracking of the spine, the rolling of the shoulders.

"You're right, I know about it. How do you plan to deal with your family? They know where you are now, you won't be able to slip away this time, nor will you be able to fight them off on your own, you need help."

"And you'll give it to me?" She smiled mockingly, her eyes suddenly flaring up with a pale golden light, she frowned then, a slightly puzzled expression blooming as she looked at the people in the room again, more slowly this time and with an obvious deliberateness. "Hmm…" Her eyes faded back to normal and she dispersed the emotions on her face yet again, staring for a long moment at Reborn. Suddenly she was at Gokudera's side, hands sorting through his pockets and then back on the other side of the room again before he could react, this time with his pack of cigarettes in hand, she shook one out and chucked the pack back to him, pulling a steel gray lighter from her own pocket. There was absolute silence as she opened the window and propped her hip against the sill, nostrils streaming bluish smoke as she took deep drags and exhaled through her nose.

"Kufufu, I see your stress relieving habits have gotten worse over time, I remember when all you needed to do to feel better was to curl up with the Devil Boy for a while, usually till you fell asleep." Her whole body tensed and her attention turned slowly to the door that had just opened and, more specifically, the figure that had just stepped into the room, her eyes wide with shock. "And in exchange for letting you do that the Devil Boy made you sing a song for him, isn't that right, little Song Bird?"

They could almost feel the shock rolling off her in waves as she slowly stood, eyes never leaving him. She took first one, then another hesitant step towards him, and then suddenly she was running towards him and leaping into his surprisingly open arms. "Kuro-kun. It's really you, Kuro-kun." And to their utmost surprise, she was crying as she clung to him.

And he was looking down at her with a sad expression.


	3. Family Matters

**Her choices were Hibari and Reborn, she owed her life to someone and she had to pick who she wished to be indebted to. She chose what she believed to be the Lesser Evil, only time will tell if she chose wisely.**

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><p><strong>Thanks go to thearistocrat for the review, also to those that alertedfavorite this story. I hope you enjoy the newest chapter. ^_^ I apologize for the wait but the story I seem to be working on most at the moment is my Transformers one, anywho, here it is, read, review, and enjoy! ^_^**

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><p><strong>The Lesser Evil<strong>

**Chapter 3: Family Matters.**

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><p>====Story Start====<p>

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><p>It was not long before she regained control of herself, snorting with disgust at her tears even as she clung to him like a child afraid on her first day of school. She smiled up at him and wiped the tears from her eyes before surprising them all and smacking the back of his head.<p>

"Kufufu, what was that for?" She didn't answer, not directly anyways.

"You stupid!" Smack. "Crazy!" Smack. "Bastard!" Smack. "What is this I hear about you getting hauled off to fucking Vendicare?" And one last smack to the back of his head for good measure, those observing didn't quite know how to react, they were officially confused by the new girl, first she acted like a block of ice, now she'd gone from crying to yelling in a matter of minutes, clearly there was something wrong with her mind. Mukuro never stopped smiling, in fact his smile seemed to even widen, but there was suddenly a menacing aura coming from him causing everyone, excluding Hibari and Reborn of course, to gulp and take a step back. Canary did not seem to notice or care as she glared at him for one very long moment before heaving a sigh and glancing away, muttering a, not very sincere sounding, apology. She then proceeded to look past him into the hall with a slightly confused expression on her face before looking back up at him with her golden eyes. "Where's Chikusa? And Ken? Are they not with you anymore?" There was a sadness in her voice and it had an almost child-like quality to it, causing him to calm down, letting out his signature laugh.

"They're downstairs."

"Oh… did… did they not want to see me?" And suddenly she was closing in on herself, now clearly hurt, they could visibly see the way her emotions became suppressed, she stopped clinging to him, her almost childish carelessness evaporating and she suddenly seemed to remember the other people in the room because she stiffened and the door on her emotions slammed shut. She eyed them all very carefully, coolly and it appeared that she was about to say something when Mukuro interrupted her.

"I told them to wait; they don't know that you're here. Why don't you go down and greet them, I'm sure that they'll be happy to see you." There was a pause as she glanced at him before nodding and walking briskly away, leaving Tsuna and his guardians, minus Lambo who was downstairs in the kitchen, to themselves. When the sounds of surprised chaos, headed by a cheerful shout of 'Ken-chan! Chi-chan!', ensued Mukuro smiled with a suddenly menacing aura and spoke in a casual, overly cheerful tone. "Kufufu, little Song Bird is so cute, ne Tsuna? She hasn't changed much ever since she was a child, still so easily hurt. You were planning to make her a part of the Family, yes? I'd be careful if I were you, kufufu." And before they could ask what he meant, for the way he said it made it sound as much like a warning as it did a threat, Chrome was there in his place.

"Well, l-let's go downstairs." This suggestion by poor No Good Tsuna was generally agreed upon and they decided to see what the strange girl was up to, as it had gotten very quiet after the initial upheaval and they found themselves rather curious. The last to leave were Hibari and Reborn, who had moved to speak to him just before Mukuro appeared, what he said to keep the violent prefect from attacking the illusionist will forever remain a mystery.

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><p>When the group arrived downstairs they found Canary sitting at the table beside Chikusa, both calmly eating what was clearly Nana's cooking, in the corner was an angrily muttering Ken who seemed to be nursing a sore head. Canary did not glance away from her bowl but her voice caused them to pause. "Kuro-kun gone then?"<p>

"Y-yeah."

"Figures, the jerk never did learn how to say goodbye." Her voice had returned to the detached monotone she had used upon her awakening, confusing them again, and causing Ken and Chikusa to stare at her, a slightly worried expression in their eyes. "Now then, I suppose we ought to get down to business, yes?" She finished the bowl but instead of turning away from the table and joining them she was handed another by Nana, which she immediately began eating. "Thank you Sawada-san. I apologize, Vongola Tenth, for my bad manners, eating during a meeting really is rude, but it has been almost nine days since I have had anything substantial to eat and making sure I don't faint from undernourishment is of greater significance to me than propriety. If you will have a seat? I think we can come to an agreement after all." She gestured with her chopsticks to the spot on the other side of the table, emphasizing her words.

After a moment's hesitation Tsuna sat across from her, nervously shifting about and clutching his hands in his lap. She was silent, allowing him time to gather his thoughts while the others decided whether they would stay or not, Ryohei and Yamamoto both had practices to go to so they left, one with an infectious laugh and the other with a shouted 'Extreme!', Gokudera clung to Tsuna like a leach, shocking I know, Chrome, feeling shy and nervous, decided to leave as well, which meant a less than pleased Chikusa and Ken had to go too.

Canary stopped eating long enough to introduce herself to the girl and to give hugs to the two boys before they departed. Lambo, cackling all the while, was briefly seen running past with a scolding I-Pin on his heels, Hibari, who was clearly _**not**_ pleased, was leaning against the wall as far away from them all as was possible without actually leaving the room, and Reborn, who was the reason Hibari was still there at all, settled at the table to Tsuna's left.

She was silent as she calmly waited for them to make the first proposal, though her mind was filled with frustration and impatience. To say she was pleased with this particular turn of events in her life would have been an outright lie.

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><p>In the end, after much bartering back and forth, it had come down to a basic trade, the use of her most singular set of skills in exchange for protection from being forced back to America and her family. She had been required to deal with Reborn, a thing which she was clearly unhappy about, as Tsuna was not quite up to the task of such business-like dealings yet.<p>

Canary sat back with a thoughtful hum and ran her fingers through her, almost blond, light red hair, she appeared to be thinking it over one last time before nodding to herself and snapping to attention. "Very well, you have a deal. Now comes the bit of unpleasantness." She did not bother saying what that unpleasantness was as she rose brusquely from the table and left the room, by the time Tsuna caught up with her she was standing in the middle of the sidewalk in front of his house talking to a figure wearing a hoody that concealed their face in shadow. When he moved to join them he was stopped by Reborn who was watching the interaction with interest.

She spoke with the figure for several minutes, the figure vanished and she came back to the house, something about the look on her face was odd but Tsuna couldn't quite place the expression, a mixture perhaps? "My brother will come tomorrow to discuss this situation further, you should expect my father as well, it seems he is already on his way here, though I don't know when his plane is to arrive." She headed towards the kitchen, only pausing very briefly to address Hibari. "I suggest you be there tomorrow, it will go better that way." And she went to help Nana clean the dishes.

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><p><strong>The action mentioned somewhere at the beginning of this chapter is also commonly referred to as the Gibbs Slap, if you don't get the reference then I suggest you watch a show called NCIS, you'll catch it pretty quick. ^_^<strong>


	4. Life Debt

**Here's chapter four! Yay! Umm… things to know:**

**1: He dad's name is pronounced **mahr-sh_uh_l

**2: I still don't quite get into it yet this chapter but when I do… Her family, while screwed up, isn't quite what she **_**thinks**_** it is, nor is the creature known as **_Salva_**. There's more going on than she's aware of. And yeah, I'll just tell you now, it has to do with time travel and alternate dimensions (Byakuran style, not real world/katekyo hitman reborn! style). Sooo… yeah.**

**3: **_Salva _**is named for** _salvaguardia_** which **_**should**_** be Italian for **_safeguard_**.**

**4: **_Canarino_** should just be Italian for **_canary_**.**

**Um… I think that's it for now… Thanks go out to all those that favoited/alerted and special thanks to**_ thearistocrat _**for the review. I hope you enjoy the new chapter! Review, yeah? ^_^**

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><p><strong>The Lesser Evil<strong>

**Chapter 4: Life Debt.**

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><p><strong>====Story Start====<strong>

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><p>The darkness and silence of night in the Sawada household was disturbed by the presence of Canary and Reborn in the kitchen. "You know, don't you? About what will happen tomorrow?"<p>

Reborn examined her calmly, eyes as unreadable as ever. "…I do."

"And…? What do you have to say about it?" The hitman shrugged carelessly, beady little eyes boring into her seemingly unemotional ones.

"…I'm not _him_, you know. The one responsible."

She was silent for a while. "…I know."

"And yet you hate me." He was fishing for something, she could tell, she wasn't sure what it was though.

She shook her head in disagreement. "I don't hate you, not really; I even feel some amount of pity for you. How could I not, Arcobaleno? But like draws like, and being around you… Eventually his attention will turn your way and I'd rather not be standing there in your shadow when that happens." She smiled dryly. "But once again, you are having me tell you things that you already know."

He didn't deny it.

She tried again to get something useful from the powerful Arcobaleno. "Why do you want me to join Sawada's family? Your risk to reward ratio is… rather one-sided, my skills are not that exemplary."

"I have my reasons."

She scoffed. "I am well aware of_** that**_. That's why I want to know."

He ignored her. "I'd prefer it if you didn't refer to me as an Arcobaleno in front of the others." The statement was sharp, not really a request.

Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. "And why's that?"

He shrugged, a smirk curling his lips. "I have my reasons."

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><p><strong>*The next day, outside of the warehouse where Canary was being held captive*<strong>

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><p>There was something about Canary's father that Tsuna just didn't like. Something beyond the fact that he was a mafia boss, although he wasn't exactly happy about that either. The man had smiled politely, bowed and introduced himself with a jovial attitude and shown due respect to the boy who would one day become the head of the Vongola family, he should have no reason to dislike him, but still…<p>

Maybe it was the cold way Canary looked at him, like he was the last person on the planet she ever wanted to see. A daughter should never feel the need to look at her own father like that. Should never have to shove away an expression of loathing when her father gives her a hug, or gently brushes her bangs from her face.

He wasn't sure why he could tell what she was feeling so much better this time, but he had a sneaking suspension that it had something to do with the fact that she was so unnerved by her father's presence. He wasn't really thinking about that right now though, he was more focused on the fact that-

"_**HIIIIIEEEEE**_!_**What do you mean she has to fight you**_!?"

The man, who really looked nothing like Canary, tossed a happy, carefree smile their way, almost as though he _**wasn't**_ telling his clearly weakened daughter to meet him in combat. "Well, you can hardly expect me to let my daughter continue to live here, in a foreign country, unsupervised, without making sure that she's strong enough to take care of herself."

It worked, in a warped kind of way; Tsuna suspected it was a mafia thing, he desperately hoped that it never made sense to him.

"But… Still! Look at her! It hardly seems fair-"

"Vongola Tenth!" Her voice was sharp, her eyes positively glacial. "This is none of your concern; I would appreciate it if you would let me handle this."

Tsuna was still compelled to stop this before it started but the warning in her eyes kept his mouth shut, instead he turned uncertainly to Reborn, who was observing things with his ever-present smirk. His unvoiced plea was answered by a foot to the face. "Don't worry Dame-Tsuna, _Canarino_ knows what she is doing; you shouldn't behave so pathetically in front of the enemy."

And that settled that.

If she was thrown, _**she was**_, by the fact that Reborn had apparently decided to start calling her _Canarino_, -_**seriously when did this happen**_?- she showed no sign of it. She merely stood with an impassive expression on her face, arms crossed, waiting for something. That something walked briskly up to her from her father's side and handed over a soccer ball sized over-the-shoulder bag that clanked suspiciously when it changed hands, she immediately slung the strap over herself and opened the flap to examine the contents. Her eyes snapped up sharply, "Where are the gloves?"

Her father, still grinning, shrugged. "They seem to have gotten a bit lost in the confusion of your… liberation." He chuckled.

Canary was silent for a very long moment before giving a quick nod. "Unfortunate. I will have to make do without." Her words were clipped, annoyed, she turned her gaze back to the contents of the bag, missing the slight disappointment that flared very briefly in her father's eyes. They were golden, like her own, the only trait the two seemed to share. She nodded again, this time to herself, before glancing up at her father once more. "Shall we?"

"Of course!" He led the way to the door of the warehouse, holding it open for her to precede him and closing it behind himself. The sound of the bolt sliding home sent a pang of dread down Tsuna's spine, he turned to Reborn for an explanation.

"Unless it is absolutely necessary, the Black family will allow no one to see them fight, not even one of their own. The doors will open up again when the fight is done."

And that was that.

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><p><strong>*About five minutes earlier*<strong>

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><p>"-my father, Marxial Black. Father, this is Tsunayoshi Sawada, Vongola's future Tenth." She pretended not to see the calculating look that flashed briefly across his face when she mentioned what Tsuna was. "Also, Reborn, number one hitman. And this-" She twisted around and grabbed the wrist of one very <em><strong>angry<strong>_ skylark, pulling him forward until he stood beside her; she immediately released him. "is Kyōya Hibari, the person to whom I owe a life debt and the reason I cannot leave with you." There was a pause as her father absorbed that.

"What did you just say?" It was hard to tell whether he was angry or surprised, either way, it was clear that he had heard what she said, she didn't bother to repeat herself. "Life debts are-"

"One of the few principles we still maintain within our family, they cannot be denied, not even by you, Family Head." Her words were a challenge, she stared unwaveringly at him.

His lips thinned slightly with disapproval. "I was going to say that life debts are heavy matters, you should be careful when you fling them about. They are, as you said, not something that can be denied, not even by _**you**_, after you have made the claim."

"Good thing, then, that I weigh everything I do so carefully, wouldn't you say?" She was answered by a non-committal hum, bringing a slight smirk to her lips. "I have already discussed conditions with Reborn-san, we have come to an agreement of terms, I tell you now as a courtesy only."

"Is that so? And what of our compensation for taking a member of our family?"

"If it were any kind of loss you would, of course, be compensated. However, because I have not been staying with any of our family for nearly two years now, nor have I been in contact with any of them, you have lost nothing except potential. And you cannot charge for _**potential**_."

"I can't just release you to them. If you are so set on this, then you have to fight me."

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><p><strong>*Back to the present*<strong>

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><p>"I don't get it. If the situation causes such trouble why doesn't Hibari-san just release her from the debt?"<p>

"You really don't understand the situation at all. If Hibari were to do that it would be an extreme insult to her. To suggest that her life has such little value, even he, who cares nothing for other's feelings, has more honor than that." The fact that Hibari now had someone to help with all his paperwork was not mentioned. Tsuna didn't bother to say anything to that, whatever came out of his mouth at this point would only result in a painful reaction from either Reborn or Hibari himself. "It's quite clever on her part really, but also very risky, I'm a bit surprised she went through with it."

Whatever he might have said to that was interrupted by the doors opening, catching everyone's attention. Worry bubbled up within him when Tsuna realized that the figure standing in the doorway was a mildly ruffled Marxial Black.

Who was alone.

The man walked out of the building, the calm _tap-tap-tap_ of his shoes only making Tsuna more concerned. Marxial flashed them a carefree smile as he settled his coat on his frame properly, discarding the tie that had been cut by a ragged blade of some sort. "Ah, she will probably need medical attention soon, there was a lot of blood flying around in there." He smiled again and Tsuna noticed for the first time that Marxial had left bloody footprints wherever he walked.

The boy needed no more prompting, rushing inside the building as though his life depended on it. What he found stopped him dead.

Canary looked like her hands and arms had been mauled by a tiger shark, ragged cuts slashing their way across them like some morbid bit of art, the cuts on her hands where the deepest and they worried him greatly. The rest of her body was also cut and bruised but it was clear, even to him, that the injuries where caused by a different weapon entirely, he had no time to ponder this.

Reborn was beside him before he could even think to call out, looking down at her. "Humph, stubborn girl. She's strong though, I'll give her that." His tone almost sounded… fond.

Tsuna was too busy freaking out to notice.


	5. Consequences

**Here's chapter five! Hip-hip-hooray! Umm… things to know:**

**1: Reborn's kinda… out of character a bit at the beginning but at the same time not. It's just, we all know he actually does care, there are brief instances where he shows concern and stuff so I figure, in the privacy of his mind at least, that he's not quite the way he makes everyone think he is.**

**2: I **_**still**_** don't quite get into it yet this chapter (though I give you a better idea of how it affects Canary at least) but when I do… Her family, while screwed up, isn't quite what she thinks it is, nor is the creature known as **_Salva_**. There's more going on than she's aware of. And yeah, I'll just tell you now, it has to do with time travel and alternate dimensions (Byakuran style, not real world/katekyo hitman reborn! style). Sooo… yeah.**

**3: **_Salva_** is named for **_salvaguardia_** which should be Italian for safeguard.**

**4: **_Canarino_** should just be Italian for canary.**

**Um… I think that's it for now… Thanks go out to all those that favoited/alerted and special thanks to **SinisteRRRsAngel** and **Mukufan** for the reviews, they are much appreciated.**

**I had fun with chapter, mostly making Canary freak out, so really I hope you guys enjoy this new chapter! Review, yeah? ^_^**

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><p><strong>The Lesser Evil<strong>

**Chapter 5: Consequences.**

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><p><strong>====Story Start====<strong>

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><p>They had met once, in the long ago, the time before she became the practiced falsehood she was now, before her family had decided to collect information on the Estraneo Famiglia, before she had truly been introduced to her family's… <em><strong>art<strong>_. She didn't recognize him of course, and that was just fine with him, he preferred it even.

But he remembered her.

He remembered the shy little girl that had clutched so desperately onto her mother's skirt as she peered through her eyelashes at him from behind her mother's legs, big eyes wide and glimmering with curiosity and a hidden intelligence, she had been clever even then, more than her family realized. He had felt an immediate pity for the girl, not because she was born to the mafia, but because she had been born to _**that**_ family.

He had seen such an intense sensitivity in those large eyes, one he would later be surprised to see once again in Tsuna, that he could feel nothing but pity for her; she who had been born into one of the coldest famigalias in the whole of the mafia world. That pity, uncharacteristic of him, was what had him, when she had finally worked up the nerve to approach him while her parents were busy talking to Nono, looking her in the eye and telling her, calmly and kindly, to be strong. She hadn't quite understood at the time, no matter how clever she was still a child, but she had looked at him gravely, knowing his words were important, and nodded with a seriousness unbefitting a child her age, even a mafia one. She had known, instinctively, that he had not meant the strength that the rest of her family always went on about, that of the body and the mind, he had meant a much more important strength, that of will.

And though she would forget the face, and even the voice, she would never forget the words, nor the meaning behind them. They would guide her as she grew.

She had smiled at him then, bright and cheerful and full of life, before her mother called her back. It was hard to forget that smile. It had been seared into his memory, burned like a brand.

Looking at her now, in the hospital bed where her father and her own stubborn strength had put her, he couldn't help but wish that she had never smiled at him. He didn't deserve it.

Reborn was shaken from his uncharacteristically brooding thoughts by his, not as hopeless as he clamed, hopeless pupil. "What do you mean they just _**LEFT**_?"

Dino, who had randomly shown up for no apparent reason what-so-ever, -_and really, was that so surprising_?- shrugged. "I mean just that. They handed over her bag, and a cage containing a dog, and they left."

"Bu-but… But he put her in the _**hospital**_! He nearly _**killed her**_! How could he just leave?"

Had Reborn been so inclined he probably would have rolled his eyes, Tsuna could be so stupid sometimes. "His business was concluded; he had no reason to stay."

"N-no reason to stay?" Tsuna was appalled. "_**His daughter's in the hospital**_! _**He put her there**_! _**How does that**_-"

He would likely have continued, probably for quite some time, if he had not been interrupted. No, not by Reborn.

By a very torn and bloodied shirt.

Thrown violently into his face.

"_**Shut**_. _**Up**_." The words were clipped, the tone cold, Tsuna was suddenly struck by an unnerving sense of familiarity, it was solidified by the girl's next comment. "You're too damn noisy." The boy shivered, intentional or not, she had momentarily reminded him of Hibari. However, when he looked at her, fearfully, he was not met with blazing, blood-thirsty steel eyes, but rather, exhausted, hurting gold. Her words simmered down into a murmur. "I have a splitting headache." Her eyes went to Reborn, the only competent person in the room, she didn't know Dino and even if she did she still probably would have dismissed him, gaze analytical. "Did he return my weapons? My gloves and Salva as well?"

When all he did was lift an enquiring eyebrow -_he pretended to be confused just to piss her off, she was sure of it_- she huffed. "Bag. Gloves. Dog. Were they returned or not?"

Dino was the one who spoke up here, stumbling over himself as he lifted the bag in question. "I don't know anything about any gloves but they did leave a do-"

She cut him off. "Give me the damn bag."

He did.

He began rambling, unaware that she wasn't paying him a bit of attention, as she dug through her bag. She froze suddenly, the air around her dropping several degrees, as she stared with absolute loathing at whatever was in the bag. Tsuna was reminded, again, briefly, of Hibari. "That little _**shit**_. I'm going to _**kill**_ that little piece of-" She trailed off; carefully, almost mournfully, she pulled something from her bag. It was a pair of gloves.

A pair of very _**pink**_ gloves.

A pair of very _**pink**_ and _**sparkly**_ gloves.

A pair of very _**pink**_ and _**sparkly**_ and _**purple flower**_ _**covered**_ gloves.

Said gloves were suddenly hurled forcefully across the room with an enraged stream of curses in an –_somewhat impressive, Reborn privately thought_- extreme mixture of English, Japanese, Italian, Latin, German, -_the only German words she knew were curses, she had learned them because her old German-American neighbor hadn't liked her much_- and Spanish. They hit the wall with a sound that revealed them to be, at least partially, made of metal.

"_**Hiiiieeeeeeee**_! B-Black-san are you-"

"Don't. Don't call me that despicable name. I go by Hanimo, Nari at school, if you must use actual names call me that. Otherwise just refer to me as Sempai, seeing as you are my Kohai." The anger was still audible in her voice and her body language _**screamed**_ with a need to destroy, to break something. The boy's pathetic squeak of fright, followed quickly by a fearful agreement, brought her down slightly and she realized how strange she'd been acting.

Why was she being so _**emotional**_?

With Mukuro and company it had been understandable, her closest friends, who she hadn't seen in _**years**_, suddenly showing up out of the blue had hit her hard. She's always been at her most childish with him anyways. But now? Why was she acting like this _**now**_?

A glance around the room answered her and she actually did a facepalm. _**Hospital**_. Right. She dragged her hand down her face and let out a huff of irritation. Injuries, plus hospital, meant drugs; painkillers, most likely. And drugs made her loopy as hell.

Completely oblivious to the strange looks she was getting from Tsuna, further proof of how loopy she was, she began muttering to herself, her thoughts all running together. "**Damn Bastard- It figures something like this would happen- I hate that little snot- That asshole probably even requested for me to get put on the stronger stuff- Damn my head hurts- How'd he even get his hands on them in the first place-"** It took a while for her to wind down from her rant, it amused Reborn to note that she was actually angry at two different people, her father, and whoever it was that had… mutilated her gloves. They didn't have time to talk to her though, as she immediately passed out once she stopped talking.

* * *

><p>A week later and she was released from the hospital.<p>

Less than an hour after that, and she was back in again, having been '_bitten to death_' by an angry prefect.

Said tonfa wielding, bird and school loving, incredibly irritable prefect had not been happy to find out that the girl had been_** intentionally**_ getting low –_average, normal, regular_- grades in order to better fade into the background, thus lowering the school average. He had also not forgotten the way she had invaded his personal space and actually _**touched**_ him during the confrontation with her father. And the fact that she had _**lied**_ on her transcript certainly contributed to her re-hospitalization as well.

And perhaps, _**perhaps**_, he still held a bit of a grudge for the light bruise on his left cheekbone, even if it had been more of a lucky hit than anything else.

The transcript issue was cleared up while she was in the hospital the second time, him practically standing over her –_looming really_- as he made her redo everything truthfully. He also made her retake the entrance exam to see where her skill level really was, taking her off the pain medication to make sure she could actually _**use**_ her brain with some amount of clarity, –_she was disturbingly… idiotic while on it_- once she was actually lucid she surprised him by requesting that she not be given any more.

He acquiesced, if only so he didn't have to suffer her annoyingly loud and foolish behavior any longer.

* * *

><p>While she was stuck in the hospital –<em>it had hurt getting beat up by Hibari damn it! She didn't want to move until she was healed!<em>- she was often visited by Tsuna and his friends. Once, when it had been just him and Reborn, she felt she had to make something clear, because she had felt a slow warmth forming within her towards all these kind people who were always telling her to get better in their own ways, she owed them.

She explained it plainly, "You can't trust me you know."

He looked ever-so confused, though Reborn eyed her knowingly. "What do you mean by that?"

"I mean exactly what I say. My family is not your friend; my family is not the friend of anyone at all. They are in the business of information; they have loyalty to no one but themselves. The only reason I am here and not back in the States right this very second is because my father intends to use me to his benefit. You cannot trust me, you cannot put your faith in me, you cannot give to me your secrets. I will do what is best for me, just as I have always done. You cannot trust me, and you cannot be my friend. It's dangerous for you and for all the people you care about. You must keep me at arm's length or else you will forget yourself and give me something that can be used against you."

She had not looked at him as she spoke, instead staring at her hands clasped in her lap, so when she looked up and saw the compassion and understanding in his eyes she was startled, more so when he gave her a comforting hug. It was brief but made her eyes well with tears.

Nothing else was said for the rest of the visit until they were getting ready to leave, Reborn hung back as Tsuna left first. "Foolish _Canarino_," Canary looked up at Reborn with confusion; his eyes were hidden by his fedora. "Dame-Tsuna is stronger than you give him credit for, he will decide who he becomes friends with." And then he left.


End file.
